Shrimp Creole

This was my favorite dish growing up.  My Mom is a great cook and this is her recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 C. of chopped onions
• ½ C. of chopped bell pepper
• ½ C. of chopped celery
• 4 cloves of mined garlic
• 5 lbs. of shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 2 cans of tomato paste
• 4 cans of tomato sauce
• 4 C. water or shrimp stock
• ¼ C. of Crystal Hot Sauce
• 2 T. sugar
• 1 T. of salt
• ½ T. of black pepper
• ¼ t. cayenne pepper
• ½ C flour
• ½ C vegetable oil

Directions:

1. Add oil and flour to a cast iron pot to make a blonde roux over medium high heat until the color of a walnut (about 7 – 8 minutes)
2. Add onions, bell peppers, and celery and cook until limp
3. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute
4. Add paste and cook for about  3 minutes
5. Add sauce, stock, hot sauce, sugar, salt, pepper, and cayenne
6. Bring to a simmer and cook for 1 hour and 30 minutes (stirring often)
7. Add shrimp and cook another 20 minutes
8. Serve with hot rice

Tips and Tricks:

•        You can make shrimp stock to use instead of the water.  It is easy!  After you peel your shrimp, place everything that is left in a big pot with 12 C. of water, 2 onions cut in half, 4 stalks of celery, 1 head of garlic cut in half, 1 T. Tony Chachere’s Creole Seasoning.  Boil for 1 hour then strain stock. 
•        This Creole is very smooth.  If you like a chunkier sauce, you can use crushed tomatoes instead of the sauce.  Rotel tomatoes are good for this also, but cut out the cayenne and hot sauce or it may get too spicy.

White Beans with Shrimp

This is pure comfort food.  I like white beans more than red beans.  The shrimp are like icing on the cake. 

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. of great northern white beans
• 3 T. vegetable oil
• ½  lb. of cured ham, diced
• 2 large onions, finely chopped
• 1 bell pepper, finely chopped
• 3 ribs of celery, finely chopped
• 6 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 t. thyme
• 2 bay leaves
• 6 C. shrimp stock or chicken stock
• 2 C. water
• 1 T. of Tony Chachere’s Creole Seasoning
• 2 t. kosher salt
• ½ t. ground black pepper
• ¼ t. cayenne pepper
• ¼ C. Crystal hot sauce
• 3 lbs. of medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
• ¼ C. chopped green onion tops
• Cooked white or brown rice

Directions:

1. Rinse the beans in cold water and let them sit in about 6 C. of water overnight
2. In a Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium-high heat and add the cubed ham
3. Cook for about 5 minutes
4. Then add the onions, bell pepper, and celery and cook for about 10 minutes
5. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute
6. Add the thyme and  bay leaves, stir
7. Add the beans (that have been drained) and stock, then bring to a boil
8. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 3 hours
9. Toss the peeled shrimp with 1 ½ t. of Tony’s and 1 t. of salt
10. Add the remaining salt, Tony’s, black pepper, cayenne pepper and hot sauce to the beans
11. Stir the beans well
12. Remove the pot from the heat
13. Remove 4 C. of beans and puree in a blender
14. Add them back to the pot and stir
15. Add the shrimp and green onions to the pot
16. Stir and cover for 7 minutes
17. Serve with hot rice

Tips and Tricks:

• You can make your own shrimp or chicken stock.  It is easy! Follow my link to find out how I make mine.  
• The ham is optional.  I think it needs the flavor of the ham, but if you want this for a Friday in Lent or you aren’t a ham fan it is not necessary.

Grillades

Serving brunch?  You will need a Grits and Grillades recipe if you want to do it the "New Orleans" way. This is not the veal steak "Grillades".   It is just a lean cut of beef (round steak) simmered in a delicious gravy.

See how the meat is so tender it's falling apart?

Ingredients:

• 4 lbs. of round steak cut into ½ inch strips
• 1 lb. of bacon
• ½ C. vegetable oil
• ½ C. flour
• 2 C. of chopped onions
• 1 C. of chopped bell pepper
• 1 C. of chopped celery
• 6 cloves of mined garlic
• 1 bunch of green onions finely chopped
• ½ C. of fresh parsley finely chopped
• 2 T. Worcestershire Sauce
• 2 T. Crystal or Louisiana hot sauce
• 1 T. salt
• 1 T. Tony Chachere’s Creole Seasoning
• 1 t. thyme
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 can crushed tomatoes
• 1 can Rotel tomatoes
• 1 C. beef broth
• 1 C. red wine

Directions:

1.    Fry bacon in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat until crisp and remove from pot

2.    Brown round steak in the bacon fat and remove from pot

3.    Make a dark roux with oil, flour, and drippings from browning the meat. This starts as a brown color because of the meat drippings.  Be careful to cook the roux long enough, at least 15 minutes.

4.    Add onions, bell pepper, and celery and cook until limp

5.    Add garlic and cook for 1 minute

6.    Add meat, crumbled bacon, and all of the other ingredients to the pot

7.    Cook on a low heat, covered, and stirring occasionally for about 4 hours

8.    When the meat looks like it is starting to fall apart and the gravy starts to thicken up “It’s DONE”

Tips and Tricks:

·        I’ve tried cooking this in the crock pot and I didn’t have success.  I have friends who say it can be done.

·        I usually start this the night before I am serving it.  I cook it for about 2 hours and then put it in the refrigerator.  The day it is being served I cook it for the additional 3 hours.  You know the theory on the flavors getting to “marry” in the refrigerator.

·        This is great with grits.  I make a Garlic Cheese Grits to serve with this.  Follow my link to get the recipe.